Functional bracing of humeral schaft fractures in osteoporotic patients.

: Introduction. There are many treatment methods in use, both surgical and non-surgical, for fractures of the shaft of the humeral bone. Material and methods. We did a prospective study of the effectiveness of functional bracing for humeral shaft fractures in 8 selected patients with osteoporosis, aged 56-78. Evaluation was based on radiographic signs of bone union, the quality of reduction, and the functioning of the ulnar and gleno-humeral joints and the upper extremity as a whole. Results. In all the cases studied, good and fast bone union was achieved with varying degrees of residual deformation, without detectable influence of the latter on the functional result. Conclusions. The method in use proved to be very effective, since early, good function of the injured extremity was restored and patient satisfaction was very high.